identifiler

It's pretty simple, this restaurant offers a pretty large menu. You shouldn't worry about anything other than what is on your plate. You won't be disappointed. The produce's Martin uses are extremely fresh, I'd really like to know were he gets some of it because the sea food platter is pretty impressive. Fairly soon, he will add the salt marsh lamb if not done already. I wouldn't worry much about technology and other things. Go ask Picard about this kind of stuff, he'll probably show you one of his skillet and explain what he is best at. Also, check out some of the market offering he has sometimes to take out. Sometimes they all go nuts and make about 10 boxes of home made ketchup for sale in 500ml mason jar. I'm sure he's done something crazy with rasberrie's or is selling the 60 or so japanese hybrid lilies that clutter the bar area...

I don't like poutine... I never really gave it a try. I would definitely check out "frites alors" on Marianne to see if they have one. However, that poutine possibility in Bolton center sounds amazing, I just love biking in Bolton from the back roads of Knowlton, stopping by to make faces at those huge Highland cows... Where is that spot you take about ? Is it right in town after the big speed hill, close to the main church ?

Well I just fell on a great ice cream producer. The chocolate maker "La cabosse d'or" in St Hilaire offers one of the best ice cream in the region, any chocolate favor beating the ice cream at bilboquet. The added bonus is that there is now a Mini Golf range behind it to keep the kids busy...

The McGill and Tremblant venues did have some good nights, I also did have some bad experiences. Let's just say, Soto was never in my top 5 list of sushi. A sushishop just opened in my town and even though a friend owns the franchise and brought in some good hands from spots like Kaizen. It is still dependant of it's corporate control and centralised raw product purchases. At least Sushi shop has little prices with little sushies and has specialised in take out and take out offering, I call this a fast food joint. Soto Express propably served one of the worst take out sushi in Montreal... Dried and questionable stuff. We are years and years away of spots like sushi volant. It was known that Soto had some liquidity problems, the whole ordeal started out when it was made public that the Soto group had gained access to offer the only food in the new Caisse de Depot building, the licence offered was highly questionned when JC Scraire and his local mafia had made arragements for that. The deal was further scrutinised when it was revealed that Soto Corp had failed to pay it's rent from day one in the new Les Ailes de la Mode buidling (I am talking about the high end lebanese restaurant upstairs, a sad affair of bankers and zuit suits who just got over their mom's spagetti sauce). If people dig in they will see the amazing and incredible ways of raising new capital for business types who's only claim to fame is to know "the right folks"... well the right folks just got canned... and I guess they are taking down a bunch of parasites with them. Roberge:1 Salas:0 Scraire:10 (until he goes to jail) CDP and Ivanhoe: joke of the year.

I aslo went there over the week end. What a charming restaurant ! I love the location. The food is excellent, and everything with it ! Some very nice Daigneault veggies, cooked perfectly. I wonderfully soft and textured magret of cuisse de lapin. I never even saw the dessert in front of my girlfriend, she swallowed it in about 3 seconds (under the insane excuse that we were late for DJ Ram), apparently a 3 chocolate affair simply amazing. My friend had a mushroom galette and I had a small vegetable selection with great ricotta. A slightly stronger version of the great cheese was added to the ravioli of my friend. It was delicious. The service was incredible, there is definitely the energy of proper attention. The bill represents one of the most honest serving in Montreal.

Right on ! You got quite a review in Voir this week. Looks like a long life for Brunoise !

I believe they still are but I have to check with el heffe del prego who controls my agenda. However, we just learned that another of our concert has been diluted to almots nothing. Jazzanova's and Joseph Malik, malik will not show up and Jazzanova is now set for a dj show only and well... they suck as dj's and I have rarely praised folks for slapping on a round piece of vinyl... So Daniella may be in order for us... Click on my name, then click on send mail. It will get to me.

Another spot not historicaly assocciated with the grand prix is getting it's fame. Looks like my neighbor won't be keeping me up late this week end with helicopters hovering over the pool... Cirque du soleil grand prix week end party usually held at Guy Laliberte's house will take over Cube on sunday evening.

hate to dwell on this no food subject but Ribo, I didn't want to sound bad about it but rather funny, even the band doesn't hold back on the cheezy acid sound, it's a trademark and they have plenty of fun with it, this is why I will be there to enjoy and laugh hard while dancing. Cheers.

There is some fish at Pied de cochon is that fits, the salads are also quite nice, I would simply order couple of appetizers for the girls. I find the experience at Pied de cochon to be much more enjoyable than Levesque for pure Montreal immersion, it's a little bit more unique in my opinion. Not withstanding the fact that it is on duluth. I strongly suggest going up st Denis but that's quite a walk, might be more than 30 minutes walk... don't go up Berri, there is nothing on that street. St Denis is one of the busiest street in Montreal. Take a cab half way up, around pine avenue and you are in business for a nice walk. Ferreira downtown on peel might be another option, Rosalie could also be an option... Other options would be to walk down st Laurent towards the old Montreal. The downtown core is more of a shop district and turns a bit mad during the jazz fest. The jazz fest shows are rather quick and tight (one of my peev with the Spectra boys...) for sure, you are out around 8:00h. BTW parking on Van Horn is no trouble at all, take Van Horn from Parc Ave and park right there.

Ribo, I'll probably be there. I saw them open for st germain couple of years back. Tacky stuff, as in live house trance music, when you think they are going to the top, they keep going up, more and more until you just burst out laughing because it gets ridiculous. Keep you eyes on the drummer, he certainly shows why a band like this cannot give very long extended sets. That guy must have all sorts of tendenitis problems.

Just a couple of hints usefull or not about hotel. First off, I joined a friend last week end for some food. He was staying at the new square philips hotel, I was really impressed with the 125$ corporate rate, small kitchen and loft size room. Not luxurious but very european. This would make an excellent spot for jazz fest travellers. The hotel that offers free jazz concerts starting 12:00 was old gov. run, then meridien now became a Wyndham... this hideout is totally closed off for public or at least it's not always easy to get in. It is the official hotel for the fest, houses all artists and bands, etc... there have been some memorable jams in the bar with top 10 jazz artists... for free... unfortunately, to many peeps found out about it. Reguarding Les chevres, I think in two hours you will be able to deal with this especially if you are in around 7:00h or 6:30h, that's early for us frenchies. If you tell them you have a concert, no probs. You have two alternatives to get to the jazz fest 1- cab ride that should take you all the way there or 2- car ride, in this case, the best deal to access parking for the jazz fest is around the complexe desjardins area (Rene levesques and janne mance), there are a couple of parking, you can make your way up Wyndham hotel half way and park there or to the left of that. You can also park your car around Rene Levesque and st laurent, there are two parking lots on the north est side of rene lesvesque, do not turn on st laurent or you will be trapped in traffic. Forget parking on st catherine it is totally blocked off around the Place des Arts Area. Expect a lot of jay walkers, it is a national sport here.

Richard ! Great review, will definitely put brunoise on my next outing. It's a perfect spot to show the plateau atmosphere to out of towners. Congrats on the graduation.

The outdoor listing came out yesterday. Looks like a very good outdoor programming this year. Centered around mostly around classical jazz and world beat. Looks like my request for reggea and dub will be answered.

not if it is limp... (god, I just had to). Sorry.

Seriously, they are not even in the same categorie (the fries), no-where-near... this is why I really think the kitchen has changed their fries between what Leslie had and what we both had... You did mention superb as a qualifier... there is just no way... reguardless if they are compared to another restaurant or not...

You can't go wrong with Dave Holland. Also, the gesu room is to die for when attending concerts. I saw Marc Ribot there last year... it was one of the most ecclectic guitar show I ever saw (without les postizoz).

There are indeed not to far apart, however, a rib steak will be very tender because less exercised, the rib region is of course described as being behing the shoulders of the animal (standing). The hanger steak follows the rib, in the region called the short plate, just before the flank region (underbelly) and loin region. The hanger steak takes it's name because it is position just under the diaphragm, a more autonomos muscle less associated to a bone, it just hangs on the diaphragm. It is basically just before the bavette (if positioned from mouth to tail).

I was out there about three weeks ago. I ate at momoya and thaught it was pretty good. Lobster sushi, hello ! I was there only for a few hours but noticed that momoya also opened a steak house around the next corner, apparently it is very good.

Sorry about that, yes it is hanger steak.

I was tempted by the foie gras. I really had to chew on that onglet. I am sorry Leslie, I am certain something happened between your fries and my fries. The fries I had, I do not think were cut on site. Maybe you can confirm but my fries had pretty much the look of St Hubert fries but slightly less fat but soft. There was not a single eye or skin on my fries, they looked process. I am a big frie guy and I find the fries at Rosalie to be the best in Montreal with the ones I had last night not even in the top ten. I think we didn't get the same fries. Didn't the Holder's have some ownership in Queue de Cheval. They had their hands on all sorts of stuff, Royal, Swiming. I think they may have shares in a couple of spots in Quebec too (Cafe du monde/cochon dinge conglomerate). I like the place too, the prices are honest. It's going to need a little bit more "identity" dishes, something that makes you crave only at Holder.

We went there yesterday before going out. I can say that my last couple of restaurant evenings have been weird to say the least. We spotted Holder which is on McGill very close to Cube. They did a really nice job for the restaurant. The first thaught, when you enter the restaurant, is that you've entered one of those super-restos that have a very high volume, reminded me exactly of Brasserie Jo in Chicago. It's impressive to see such large floors opening in Montreal. The second thing we noticed was that the Holder was named after the Holder brothers ! I couldn't believe it ! Sometimes, it's like a twilight zone, from the bumping days of the Business to the Brasserie. My understanding is that the Holder's have been doing all sorts of projects. The moto last night was "they made us dance now they are feeding us". The staff was in good spirit. You can sense that there seems to be a strong effort to create the brasserie environment, the owners had tons of kids at their table, the service was upscale but functionnal. It's going to take a while, although I could see the bar area being invaded late on week nights (was not the case yesterday). It's going to be up to the staff and the kitchen to make it work. The decor and ambiance are at par. For me, pub, bistro, Brasserie, the idea is that there must be one or two items that are undisputedly mastered on the menu, that is unique to that place. I didn't really notice any effort on beer selection, looks more to be centered on port. It's still a debate to know exactly what direction this retaurant will take as the menu covers quite a bit, but all Brasserie items. We were in a hurry but I had a Roquefort, grapefruit, apple and endive salad. It was very good, lacked a bit of lift since shredding endive creates more liquids, a very bold oil would have been welcomed. My friend had the chevre chaux which is a simple broiled piece of chevre with beets, pickles. The croutons are very good so they went fast with the chevre. For main, I had the Onglet with petits haricots and my friend had the fish and chips. The onglet was a bit tough (more than the onglet I am used to), it came with a light sauce and some string haricots. Those were slightly overcooked and again could have used some lift. The fish was good, aiglefin, and the plate is very big. The bater is well done, the tartare sauce is by far the best I have had in a while and maybe the signature item of the evening. The fries were acceptable but truly not what is expected of a Brasserie... Then came the moment... All night I could see the chef, Maitre D and waiter battling with the table behind us. A place like Holder on a Saturday night seems to attract a crowd of be seens and want to be seens. The table kept sending back their appetizers, there was alot of insults flying around, everyone kept on saying "It's too ZALTY" like big lamentations. I'm think they all read the gazette artcile from Leslie because it was all salad. They truly wanted to create a scene because they did not accept any arrangements the staff would make. Two tables beside them asked if they could be moved. When my friend came back from the washroom (she was dressed in black), she got shouted at by the oldest member of the table to bring him a beer. That's when I blew my fuse and told him to sit down before he makes another mistake. How is it possible to be agressive like that with a pregnant women ? Then we got the grand finale. The man's son, who is obviously employed by his father, decided to push some basic business 101 to the employees. His voice got very loud, the manager came, the chef came on more time. The chef told him that his comments where unfair and unjustified. He asked him if "he was a slave to his customers", the chef said no and left in a total act of defense. The kid got up on his seat and with the most effeminate voice "You're stupid, you know nothing, you should be a slave to you customers" Really, really loud... Maitre D came over our table, apologized without any rude comments, asked us if we wanted to switch tables, instead made arrangements to get our coffees and bill in a flash (thank god). We are not lucky... As I walked out, I couldn't imagine what the Holder brother's would have done to a guy like that 20 years ago... I figured I should give these nasty customers a chance to blow their fuse on something constructive. Like changing a unpredicted flat tire on that brown lexus. It cost us 88$ for one salade endive, one salad chevre chaud, one onglet, one fish and chip, two coffees (espresso and capuchino) and half bottle of sancerre. Not bad, but I would pay more anytime to get the quality food of the "other" downtown brasserie. Doesn't compare at all.

With an avatar like that, I'm probably gonna run into you at hawtin tonight ? Do they sell sandwich at metropolis <------ cheap attempt to keep on the subject.... sorry.

Yes, I meant Mercury. Actually, Daniella Mercury is more like a gloria estefan. She has been at this for a while. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00...9433808-1545441 This is probably going to be the most energized concert during the jazz fest. Again, it also sounds like your daughters would also enjoy Bete.e and stef, it's a lot more a copy cat Gilberto type band. http://www.bet-e-and-stef.com/en/index.html

aaaaahhhhh the sound of musica ! First, little comment on food. I heard the spectra boys are keeping a very tight control of who can sell and who cannot based on sponsor. So, things like frites Alors and Better and Hagen Daaz are making room for "president's choice", this is not new of course... This is a minor thing for me but we aren't too far out from other large companies (ie fast food) invading the scene. Let's hope Spectra keeps an open mind to all sorts of concession stand possibilities. Reguarding the music: The main event is going to be a salsa breakdown "the spanish Harlem Orchestra from NY", the main event is the all free evening on the main stage (usually on wednesday evening), it's a total madhouse and about 200,000 people take the streets. Ther are free concerts and paid concerts. There is a lot of quality in the free concerts. The schedule for free concerts is not out yet. Reguarding paid concerts, obvioulsy the big ticket item are not cheap, around 100$ to go see something at place des arts. It was 135$ each last year to see Lauryn Hill and... herself. But well worth it just for the people watching. It was like walking in a Costco of Ford model agency. Cesaria Evora. We almost bought tickets for that but a really huge fan said I was better sticking to my CD's, apparently Ms Evora has to be dragged on stage and at the last minute, they remove the bottle... I also understand that if she is rested, it's pretty amazing. That voice is really somthing else. However, that show is at a really low fair, at that price, the gamble is much lower. If you want to hear some very good local talent in bossa, you should go see Bet.e and Stef at Metropolis, a nice easy going sophisticated show. Orchestr Baobab will also have a peculiar senegalese/cuban sound, with a youssour type vocal (high picthed). For shear entertainment, I also suggest blind boys of alabama... I saw them open up for Peter Gabriel, it was quite a lot fun, a bit gimicky but a lot of fun. Abdul Ibrahim will be in a classical african setting, so it's not the afro beats one would expect but a lot of shuffling and a lot of amazing piano. I hear a lot about Bia but never actually heard her sign... I have two tickets to sell for Daniela Mercury, I can't get a baby sitter for that evening because it is too early. This is a stadium size artist in Brezil, we are talking the britny spears of samba reggea. Very very glitzy but a bit overborad for my taste. A la miami sound machine. Micheal Buble is a crooner style performer form Vancouver, he is backed up by Diana Chrysler Krall. He will do only covers in his own way (bee gees, paul anka, sinatra, van morrison). If you like this, I suggest Malia, it's going to be more interesting. Too bad Coral Egan is not here this year but keep your eyes open for maybe a free show. Very good. I didn't think it was the best programing but I guess I can't complain. I'm going to see Gotan project/cinematic orchestra, Medeski and Brown (the led zeppelin of jazz), Elvis Costello, the whole bleue dry evenings series (hello coffee...). My peeve this year, not enough raggea and dub other than Ben Harper.